Bed Rest and Candy Canes

"Uh…Marissa," a hesitant Caitlyn asked her sister, her facial expression portraying the confusion evident in her voice. "Why are you eating so quickly? Take your time. You're going to make yourself sick."

Answering with her mouth full, Marissa said, "Can't. If Ryan sees that I already ate once when he gets here, he won't let me eat again. I don't know who made him the damn food Nazi, but he watches what I eat like a hawk. I'm still hungry, so I'm going to eat another meal when he gets here, one that he'll approve of."

"Yeah, I can't believe that he wouldn't approve of an order of fries, cheesecake, and an extra large chocolate sundae." Giggling, she continued. "Marissa, he loves you and the baby you're carrying. He just wants you to be healthy, and you really can't blame him."

"I don't," Marissa protested, "and we love him, too, but, at this point, I'm almost eight months pregnant and I REALLY love food. Sometimes a girl just needs something other than salads or broccoli or bananas, you know?"

"No, I can't say that I do," Caitlyn responded, laughing. "I've never been pregnant, which is a good thing, a very good thing, and I plan on keeping it that way for a LONG time."

"Okay finished," Marissa shouted, almost jumping out of her side of the booth as she waved their waitress over. Caitlyn merely giggled at her older sister as she paid little attention to what she said and, instead, focused upon her small ruse so that her husband would not catch her unhealthy food habits. "Now when my husband gets here," Marissa instructed, "he cannot know that I already ate, so act like I'm a new customer."

Smiling down at her, the waitress just shook her head as she walked away, talking over her shoulder. "Don't worry, I understand." Winking, she explained. "I have two kids at home," and as she went back into the kitchen, the two mothers shared a knowing smile.

Changing the subject to distract Marissa from further thoughts about her stomach, Caitlyn posed, "So, what are your and Ryan's plan for Christmas Day? Are you coming to Grandma's for dinner?"

"Yeah, we are," Marissa answered, "but we'll be at the Cohen's for breakfast and opening gifts, just the six of us, Sandy, Kirsten, Hayley, Zoe, Ryan, and I, because Seth said in his emails home last week that Summer still refuses to come home. I guess her Dad is meeting them in New York City and they're spending the holidays there. At least it will be peaceful, but it will be weird without them there….even Summer, and Kirsten is really upset that Seth isn't coming home."

Interrupting, Caitlyn replied, "You know, I know that you've told me about Summer and everything that's happened with her, but I just don't get it. It was like one minute everything was great between you guys and then….it just fell apart."

"I don't think she's been okay since she lost the baby almost two years ago. She hid it well, but I think…the loss of that part of her…broke her. It was gradual though," Marissa mused, lost in her own thought. "I mean, she didn't loose all hope at once. At first, she still had the hope that she would be able to have a child, but then she lost that. Then the show got cancelled, so she lost her job. That's when she started pondering a lot about her Mom. If I think about it, I can remember weird things she said or moments where she would act different and we all just brushed it aside, but her Mom was on her mind for months before she went to see her. When that was a disaster, she lost another piece of hope, only to come home and find out that when she was gone her fiancé tried to kiss her best friend, making her loose hope in their relationship, blaming me to salvage her dignity. At that point, she had nothing left."

"Then why did they get married?"

Sighing, Marissa responded, "Summer may have lost all hope…lost herself, but she never lost her pride, and to go back on an engagement and a wedding she had already announced and had been planning for months would have been too much of an embarrassment for her. Plus, I do think she still loves Seth; she just doesn't trust him anymore."

"Or herself," Caitlyn added. "She can't trust anyone because she doesn't trust herself. From what you've said, I don't think she has any idea who she is anymore." They were both silent for a moment while they thought about the broken woman they both knew, one Marissa had loved as a best friend and one Caitlyn had admired from afar. Breaking the silence, Caitlyn suggested, "do you ever think she'd consider therapy. I mean, she might need it to accept what has happened and move on." Laughing ruefully at herself, she pushed on. "I know that I didn't accept the idea very easily, but I could talk to her, tell her how it helped me deal with everything that Trey did to me."

"I think that's a great idea," Marissa said enthused. "I have no idea when she'll be home, but maybe I could even pass along your number and email address to Seth and have him causally mention it to her. It's worth a shot."

Sharing small smiles of agreement, the two sisters quietly sat for a moment thinking over the idea. "That's enough depressing talk though," Caitlyn finally spoke up. "It's the holidays, you're pregnant with my first niece or nephew, probably niece, but we're not holding our breath, and we got done shopping before Ryan, which is a great accomplishment seeing as he hates to shop, so we should be talking about good things. What else do you two crazy kids have planned for Christmas?"

"Not much," Marissa shared. "After breakfast at Sandy and Kirsten's we're going back home to spend the afternoon together, opening our presents from each other and, knowing Ryan, probably taking a nap, because he'll think that I look tired." Rolling her eyes at the mere thoughts of her husband's paranoia and protectiveness, she continued. "Afterwards, we'll meet you at Jane's for Christmas dinner."

"And more presents, don't forget that," Caitlyn added in giggling. "You should see the tree. There are so many presents around it that you can barely walk through the room because they're taking over the whole floor space, and most of them are for the baby, so you'll be opening presents for most of the night…if not the next day as well."

"Yeah, like that will ever happen! After an hour of sitting up, my back starts to hurt; after two, it feels like it's about to split in half. At three hours, Ryan literally has to carry me home. If they want me to open up that many presents for the baby, they better set up a bed for me to lie in and provide me with lots of chocolate to distract me." Continuing, Marissa spoke over Caitlyn's quiet laughter. "Besides, Ryan would never let me open all the gifts on my own or stay that late. I bet you, right here, right now, that he'll make sure I'm home, in bed, and comfortable by 8:00."

"Is that because he's worried about you and the baby or because it gives him an excuse to have sex with you," Caitlyn teased. "If you spend most of your time in bed, you'll be bored, and other than sleeping, there's really only one other thing you can do in bed, the very thing that got you into this situation in the first place.

"Sex, what is that again," Marissa teased, snorting playfully. "It's been too long since I've had good sex. I mean, we try, but the angle just seems to be all wrong, and I'm too big. Look at me," Marissa complained. "I'm not even eight months yet, and it looks like I'm pregnant with twins."

"You're not, right?"

"What….twins….oh, god no; I wouldn't be able to fit in the doorway if I was," she joked.

Teasing her, Caitlyn shot back, "well maybe the whole two lunch thing is part of the problem. You're not supposed to literally eat for two, you know."

"Yeah, let's see if you're still singing that song when you're pregnant, Marissa retorted sarcastically. "At this point I don't care how big I get though as long as my blood pressure stays low enough."

"How high is it," Caitlyn asked in concern.

"Too high," the older sister answered. "If it's not lower by my appointment next week then they'll probably put me on bed rest until I give birth, which will be miserable, but I'll do anything to make sure the baby is healthy."

"Is it hereditary?"

"No, as far as we can tell, and, granted, because of both Ryan and our craptastic parents, it's hard to determine to the fullest extent, but there doesn't seem to be a history for high blood pressure on either side. They tell me that it's stress induced."

"But what are you worried about," Caitlyn asked. "You're not keeping the pregnancy or the fact that you and Ryan are married a secret any longer, you and Ryan both have excellent jobs, so money is not an issue, the two of you get along beautifully, so what could there possibly be that's making you worry so much?"

Sighing dejectedly, Marissa answered, "it's Hayley. I don't know what's happened, but in a month's time, she's really started to deteriorate. She's tired all the time, she looks as if she's lost weight, and, when I was talking to her last night, it sounded like she has a cold."

"So, lots of people get colds; what the big deal," a confused Caitlyn asked.

"It's a very big deal. Because of the aids, her immune system is depleted, and this simple, common cold for her could be a death sentence. If it gets worse, it could develop into pneumonia, and I don't even want to think about what would happen if she got that sick."

Silently, Caitlyn reached across the booth's table and took her sister's hand in hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Then don't think about it. The worst case scenario is going to do nothing to help you right now. You need to remain calm and not overreact to something that very well could be nothing. You don't even know for sure that she has a cold, so just take a deep breath and relax. If Ryan comes in here and catches you worrying, he'll make you go home right away and I'll get that glare he likes to shoot at everyone but you when he's angry."

"That's because it never worked with me," Marissa confided, laughing softly. As she fell into her memories, she never noticed a man walk up behind her and stop to listen. "The first night I got here, I met Ryan out at the beach, and we just sat on this old lifeguard tower and talked for hours. It was like we had known each other our whole lives but had the excitement you only get when you meet someone new that you're attracted to. It was amazing, but anyway," she continued, shaking her head to get back to her point, "I was taunting him because we had a class together, and while he was excited, I pretended to be disappointed. When I accused him of not being able to take a little teasing, he gave me the famous Atwood glare, and I just laughed at him."

Moving so she could see him, Ryan slid into the booth beside her and kissed her softly, letting his hands gently cup her face, the pads of his thumbs delicately stroking her finely chiseled cheek bones. Pulling away, he looked deeply into her eyes and spoke in a whisper. "I think a little part of me fell in love with you at that exact moment. No one had ever….just been that comfortable with me, and it was like a drug…you were like a drug that I could not get enough of from that point on." Leaning in, he let his lips graze against her neck as he lowered his voice even more. "I still can't get enough."

Clearing her throat loudly, Caitlyn shook her head in exasperation while she talked. "You two have been married for a year and a half already, you're having your first child in about a month, and yet you still can't keep your hands off each other. Enough is enough! I, for one, vote for you to start practicing your 'we're parents, we don't have sex, and we show absolutely no PDA' motto right now."

"And just how exactly are we supposed to have our second child if we completely abstain from making love," Marissa asked smugly, purposely using the more endearing term to annoy her sister even more. "Besides, I can guarantee you that even when we're done having kids, are old, grey, and decrepit, and living in Miami as retirees, we're still going to have more PDA than you'll ever be able to stomach."

"I believe that," Caitlyn grumbled under her breath, the mirth in her eyes telling the two sitting across from her that she was merely in jest.

"Speaking of stomachs," Ryan spoke up, changing the subject, "I'm starving."

"Me, too," Marissa agreed, smirking slightly at Caitlyn when Ryan turned around to locate their waitress and motion her over. "That's why we're here on time. I just couldn't wait any longer for lunch, so we quit looking for gifts and settled for gift certificates."

"Grinning sheepishly, Ryan turned back to her. "Same here," he confessed. Sliding his arm behind Marissa and pulling her into his side, he let his hand tickle her exposed shoulder softly while he talked. "So, what's the plan for the rest of the day since the shopping if over?"

As the afternoon progressed, the three ate their lunch, talking animatedly the entire time, Ryan never the wiser of Marissa's slight deception while the girls bonded together in secrecy. It was the perfect way to start off their holiday season.

With everyone's perpetually busy schedule, it had been difficult to find an evening when the whole family could gather to decorate Sandy and Kirsten's house. Ryan and Marissa, alone every night at their apartment in Laguna Beach, had decorated the week before, Marissa, bored at home during the day, prepared everything and Ryan, determined to spend as much time with her and their unborn child as possible, was home plenty early every night to help her hang and place everything. However, the Cohen's were different. Between Hayley's doctor appointment, Zoe's school schedule, Sandy's classes, and Kirsten's overburden of work, the early weeks of December had passed them by without a chance to even purchase a tree. Stepping in, Ryan and Marissa volunteered to do the shopping for them. All they had to do was be there, all of them, on the chosen night. So, here they were on the first night of Hanukkah, together, the house ablaze with lights and activity, the kitchen filled with the delicious scent of cookies, and the faces of all those there animated with joy and delight.

Kirsten had insisted that even though Seth was not there to grace them with his stories, his instructions, or his holiday cheer, they would still decorate for and celebrate Chrismukkah in his honor, even going so far as to take pictures for him to see what they had done when he returned…whenever that would be. So, while Ryan and Marissa with Zoe's assistance baked sugar cookies, gingerbread boys, lemon and dream bars, and candy in the kitchen, Kirsten carefully decorated the tree, a tree she thought Seth would be proud of, while Sandy and Hayley playfully bickered over the order of the stockings on the mantle. It was the perfect picture of Newport domesticity and dysfunction rolled into one image. There was even Christmas music, an alternating mix of instrumental for Kirsten, Elvis for Sandy, and The Chipmunks for Hayley and Zoe, playing not-so-softly in the background.

"I don't see why you should be first on the mantle," Sandy complained to Hayley, moving her stocking towards the center again. "The man of the house should be first."

"Well, in that case," the irked woman retorted sarcastically, "we should put Ryan at the head." Before Sandy could respond, she continued. "No, in all seriousness, I should be first, because my name is aphetically first, and we are so not doing this by age. A lady never reveals her age."

"Good thing you're not a lady then."

Just as she went to physically attack him, a pillow in each hand, both she and Sandy stopped dead in their tracks as the front door swung open hastily to reveal an ecstatic Seth and a furious Summer.

"Not only does it look like Chrismukkah in here, by the way, your tree choosing skills are vastly improving Mother, but it smells like Marissa's cookies, too," Seth boomed out loudly as he bounded down the stairs into the living room. "It just makes a little confused Jewish boy's heart go pitter-patter to see all this festive cheer. Bags are in the car, Dad," he added as an aside making a sweep of the room with his eyes as if he were looking for something….or someone in particular. "Speaking of Marissa, where are those two crazy, horny kids hiding?"

"Don't say horny, Seth," Kirsten admonished seriously, but the large smile on her face eroded any of the authority she tried to infuse into what she said. Taking her son into her arms, she hugged him tightly, whispering softly in his ear. "I'm so glad you're home. It's just not Chrismukkah without you." Pulling away from him, she went to move towards Summer to greet her as well. "And Summer, it's good to see you, too. How was Europe?" Looking at the younger woman in front of her, she became confused as she saw her visibly tense up, her face turning an irate shade of red, her eyes sparking with animosity and pain. Turning around, she knew instantly what had upset her. Marissa and Ryan, with Zoe on his hip, had entered the living room to see what the fuss was about only to find Seth; all three of them breaking out into smiles at the sight of the quirky, brunette man.

"Holy hell, Marissa," Seth teased, taking her in his arms for a brotherly hug, his hand finding its way to her stomach when he pulled away, "are you having quintuplets? You're huge!"

"Seth," Ryan shouted annoyed already with his brother and silently trying to quiet him with a glare, but Marissa's laugh surprised them both.

"It's okay, Ryan," she dismissed the comment only Seth would make. "A couple of days ago when I was having waiting with Caitlyn at the diner to have lunch with you, Ryan, I said myself that it looks as if I'm having twins. I'm used to the ridicule, but be forewarned," she playfully threatened Seth, "those who make cracks at my pregnancy are going to be the last ones to hold the baby when it's born."

"Actually, Marissa," Sandy began, moving towards her and throwing his arm around her shoulders in an affectionate embrace, "I was thinking to myself this very night that it looks like you lost some weight."

Giggling, she responded, "And that just moved you into the lead for first family member to hold the baby after Ryan and me."

"But it was my idea in the first place that you and Ryan should have babies," Zoe complained, pouting. "Remember, I married you at the diner on Valentine's Day and told you that you had to have twelve babies."

"Twelve kids," Seth instantly started laughing, Sandy joining in on the jollity. "Say goodbye to your sex life now, Ryan. Zoe just issued your marital bed a death sentence."

As the five of them continued to playfully banter back and forth, making their way into the kitchen at Seth's insistance for cookies, Hayley sat back and watched Summer's reaction, moving towards Kirsten the entire time.

"Are you hungry, Summer," Kirsten finally spoke up after a moment of the young girl's silence. "We have left over take-out in the fridge. I'll heat some up for you if you want me to. Or you could just come in and help me finish this tree. I needed another woman's opinion on it anyway, so it's a good thing you decided to come home."

"I'm sure Marissa could tell you what to do," Summer bit out harshly. "She can do anything, cook, get an even better job after she looses her first one, carry a baby; ask her. If you'll excuse me, I need to go and touch up my makeup." And with that, she quickly went up the stairs towards the guest bathroom, her face the picture of emotionless acceptance.

"You have to make them leave right now," Hayley ordered her sister. "They cannot stay here."

Harshly, Kirsten responded, "I am not going to kick out my son and his wife, especially when I haven't seen him for more than two months."

"Marissa can't handle any stress right now."

"Then we'll keep her calm," Kirsten dismissed the younger woman's concerns. "Besides, everything's fine. She, Ryan, and Seth are getting along beautifully, just like the old days."

"Yeah, for now, but what's going to happen when Summer's excuse to fix her flawless makeup runs out and she comes back down here only to confront her every insecurity in the shape of Marissa? I'll tell you what's going to happen," Hayley continued, "she's going to loose it, just like she did at the wedding, but even worse this time because not only did she fail at motherhood and her career, but her marriage is failing, too, while Marissa and Ryan's has never been stronger. Summer will flip out, yell, scream, hurl hurtful and inaccurate accusations at them, and Marissa will become upset, causing her blood pressure to rise dangerously. We cannot let that happen, which means Seth and Summer can't stay here."

"I'm sure the perfect mother Marissa will be just fine," Summer remarked caustically, gliding down towards them like a queen, her chin tilted high, her small nose in the air. "And if not, if she doesn't like the fact that Seth and I are here, which, by the way we have more right because Seth is Sandy and Kirsten's real son, then she can leave. I'm not going anywhere." Stopping at the end of the staircase, hands on her hips, she faced off with Hayley.

"You know what, Summer," Hayley yelled, confronting the angry woman in front of her, "I have just about had it with this attitude of yours! I'm sorry you got dealt a bad hand, but no one here did that to you. Marissa did not cause your ectopic pregnancy, she didn't get the show cancelled, she didn't make your mother turn out to be a heartless bitch, and she did nothing to make Seth kiss her. In fact, of all of us, she has been the most supportive towards you, always there to help and never turning away from you no matter how much you hurt her, and I'm not going to stand by and,…." She stumbled, coughing loudly, doubled over in pain, but would not give in. By this time everyone had reappeared in the living room to watch the scene unfold, no one moving a muscle to interfere, too mesmerized by what they were witnessing and too relieved that someone was finally saying what they were all thinking but to afraid to admit to. Starting again, her breath ragged, Hayley picked up where she left off. "I'm not going to stand by….and let….you…hurt her….any,…" but before she could finish the thought, she fell over, unconscious, her skin pale to the sight and cold to the touch. Summer was silenced, finally showing some compassionate emotion as fear crossed her face briefly before the mask of detached passiveness fell into place. Zoe cried softly, burying her face into Sandy's shoulder roughly, afraid to watch the scene unfold in front of her, her mind flashing back to the fearful day Hayley had collapsed by the pool with only Zoe there to help her. Sandy looked to Kirsten who looked back at him, both in shock. Seth glared at Summer, letting anger at his wife take over instead of the terror he knew would cause him to loose control. The only two with enough poise under pressure to act were Ryan and Marissa. While he ran to Hayley's side to check her vitals and move her to the couch, Marissa ran….or, to be more precise, walked as quickly as her pregnancy would allow her to the nearest phone and called for help. Suddenly their perfect holiday season was ruined as everything that Marissa feared became a reality.

"Ryan's on his way," Marissa announced perkily as she walked into Hayley's hospital room completely unannounced Christmas morning without even a word of greeting, slowing eating a candy cane the entire time, making it seem as if their visit was expected, planned, as if visiting sick aids patients in hospitals was customary for everyone on holidays. "I finally figured out how to beat Ryan somewhere," she continued sitting down beside the bed in a chair positioned for visitors, her feet already seeking a readily available stool. "All I have to do is make sure that he's so loaded down with bags, presents, and food that he can't see where he's walking. I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

"Is he alright," Hayley asked while laughing. "Should we call an orderly and ask them to help him out?"

Backing up into the door because his hands were full, Ryan entered the room. "At least someone was concerned about me. Unfortunately, I can't say the same thing about my wife." Smirking at Marissa, he put the various things he carried to the room down before bending over to kiss her briefly, heading out the door as soon as he broke away from the kiss.

"Now where is he going," Hayley pondered out loud. "Are you telling me there's more to carry up here?"

"I did prepare a full meal, and you know how I like to cook, especially when I'm pregnant and everything sounds good. Plus, there are presents and a few decorations to brighten this room up. He probably only has two more trips to make, but, in the meantime, I want to hear how you're doing."

Trying to sidetrack Marissa, Hayley said, "I'd rather hear about you and what is probably my little niece."

"Nice try, but I'm not Seth," Marissa countered. "Changing the subject to me won't deter me from my original question. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine….as long as I'm laying down, not excited, and relaxed, which means I'm terrible, because you know how well I listen to doctors' orders. Plus, the bed's uncomfortable, the food sucks, all the shows are repeats because of the holidays, and I hate reading. I'm bored out of my mind. Now, I answered honestly, so let's hear about you. How's that blood pressure doing?"

"Not so hot. In fact," Marissa continued, "it's terrible. Starting tomorrow, after the holiday festivities have ended, I've been ordered to full-time bed rest."

"So we're both going to be bored bitches; Merry Christmas to us."

Actually, I have a very genius plan about that," Marissa's eyes twinkled as she admitted her plotting, "but I need to know when you can bust out of this place."

"You mean when I can leave a hospital where I'm on bed rest but at least some of the male nurses and doctors are hot to go home and be on bed rest again but there I only get my smothering sister and hairy brother-in-law to take care of me? Tomorrow."

"That's perfect! It fits with my idea flawlessly," Marissa teased unwilling to say more, "but you'll have to wait for Ryan to get back here, because I know he wanted to be here, too, when I talked to you about it."

So they sat together, the tv on mute as an old repeat of Empty Nest played in the background, and talked softly while waiting for Ryan. As Marissa predicted, he made two more trips, stopping after the second to give her another kiss and causing Hayley to make mock gagging sounds behind them before he left again. Her taunting only resulted in a nice wallop from Marissa to her leg, a punch that would ultimately leave a bruise, but Hayley enjoyed the back and forth bantering. Finally, with everything unpacked, Ryan and Marissa gathered around Hayley's beside as they exchanged gifts. Most presents were for the baby, but there were a few for each person, humorous gag gifts and meaningful mementos. However, as Ryan was packing up the discarded wrapping paper, he stood up quickly with a small, unopened gift that Marissa knew he had pulled from his pocket instead of finding it on the ground like he faked.

"What's this," he inquired curiously, pulling off the act brilliantly. Shrugging, he handed the gift to Hayley. "It says it's for you."

"Oooo, maybe someone has a secret admirer on the staff," Marissa teased.

As she opened, Hayley responded. "I doubt it. It's pretty common knowledge around here that I have aids, so unless this so called admirer has a death wish, I doubt it."

They were all silent as she handed the small sheet of used paper to Ryan, pulling apart the small box to reveal a key chain with a set of keys.

"I remember when Ryan gave me a key to his home on our first Valentines Day," Marissa shared. "It was the most meaningful gift anyone has ever or will ever give to me other than my children, and we felt, for this Christmas, that you deserved a similar gift. So those are keys to our house…our apartment…your home now, too." Sharing a glance with Ryan first, she moved over to sit on the side of Hayley's bed, taking her thin, frail hands in her own. "With me going on bed rest and you already forced to remain in one, we thought it would be a good idea if we suffered together. Although we don't really have a bedroom for you, our sofa is a converter, and we already set up the living room as your temporary bedroom. We even put a mini fridge beside it instead of a night table," she admitted, eliciting giggles from Hayley. "We'll just hang out together all day, watching movies, painting each others nails, playing on my laptop, talking, and then, at night, when Ryan gets home, he'll cook us dinner, wait on us hand and foot, and then keep us company until I go into bed with him. So," she asked hesitantly rubbing her large bump affectionately, "what do you say? Will you move in with us, Aunt Hayley?"

With tears of joy in her eyes, Hayley shook her head yes, too emotional to speak. Putting one of her hands over Marissa's on her stomach and holding the other out for Ryan to take, the three of them sat there for a minute, silent, savoring the moment as the love they felt for each other flowed between them. It may have been an unconventional Christmas, but none of them would change a single thing about it. Sometimes the most painful things in life end up being the most meaningful, and that was the lesson Ryan, Marissa, and Hayley had all learned that fateful holiday season, and they were stronger because of it.

A/N: Just to let you all know, there are only two more posts left on this fic. Thanks for reading, sticking with me, and being loyal. I'll always appreciate it. As for this post, ENJOY!

Charlynn